You aren't Da Vinci.

You aren’t Da Vinci.

I was having this same conversation with a friend of mine about a week ago. He asked me what I thought he needed to get from where he was to where he wanted to be. In the end, it came down to “Identify what your faults and lacks are - both personally, and business-wise. Be completely honest. Then either fix them, learn them, or hire someone else to handle them - whichever is more advantageous to your end goals.”

That being said, I think the idea of being a Renaissance Man (or Woman) is something that should be more appreciated. Yes, I’m aware of the theories of 10,000 hours, amongst other “how to become an expert” ideas, but I tend to respect people who are well-rounded and multifaceted a lot more than I respect those who are doggedly single-minded and focused on one thing to the exclusion of others.

A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.

-Robert A. Heinlein

Damn straight.

I agree to a point, but I think one fact is extremely telling. Heinlein, best known as a science fiction author, left the following things out of his list: typeset a novel, design a book cover, market an author or series, arrange distribution, run a printing press, etc.

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